Gutmanis Iris, Coleman Brenda L, Ramsay Kelly, Maunder Robert, Bondy Susan J, Fischer Kailey, Zhu Veronica, McGeer Allison
Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada.
University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
PLoS One. 2025 Aug 18;20(8):e0330442. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0330442. eCollection 2025.
Education workers experienced increased stress during the COVID-19 pandemic adapting to changing work locations, workload, and pedagogical approaches as well as dealing with pandemic-induced personal life stress.
The goal of this Canadian prospective cohort study was to determine whether levels of distress, as measured by the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K10), varied significantly over the course of the study (February 18, 2021 to December 22, 2023) among Ontario education workers after adjusting for demographic, work-related, and temporal factors. Exposure data were collected at enrollment and updated annually while vaccination and illness surveys were completed as needed. The K10 was completed periodically throughout the study. Linear mixed effects models were used to assess factors associated with changes in K10 scores.
On average, K10 scores fell 0.5% every four weeks over the 34-month long study. However, the mean score, that decreased from 23.1 at study start to 19.3 by study end, remained above the cut-off of 15, indicating no ongoing emotional distress. Lower distress scores were also associated with non-winter seasons, older age, being male, and being in very good/excellent health. Alternatively, higher K10 scores were associated with being on medications to reduce anxiety, depression, or sleeping problems, return-to-workplace periods after school lockdowns, and periods of intense non-pharmacological interventions.
Early identification of people most likely to experience distress is needed so that stress remediation strategies can be quickly implemented. Younger, female education workers with lower rated subjective health, who are taking medications to reduce anxiety, depression, or sleeping problems are likely to be at the highest risk. Recognizing periods that intensify stressful situations, such as pandemics and intervals within them, is important to anticipate the need for assistance.
在新冠疫情期间，教育工作者面临着越来越大的压力，他们要适应工作地点、工作量和教学方法的变化，还要应对疫情引发的个人生活压力。
这项加拿大前瞻性队列研究的目的是，在调整人口统计学、工作相关和时间因素后，确定安大略省教育工作者在研究期间（2021年2月18日至2023年12月22日），以凯斯勒心理困扰量表（K10）衡量的困扰水平是否有显著变化。在入组时收集暴露数据，并每年更新，同时根据需要完成疫苗接种和疾病调查。在整个研究过程中定期完成K10量表。使用线性混合效应模型来评估与K10得分变化相关的因素。
在为期34个月的研究中，K10得分平均每四周下降0.5%。然而，平均分从研究开始时的23.1降至研究结束时的19.3，但仍高于15的临界值，表明没有持续的情绪困扰。较低的困扰得分也与非冬季、年龄较大、男性以及健康状况非常好/优秀有关。相反，较高的K10得分与服用减轻焦虑、抑郁或睡眠问题的药物、学校封锁后的重返工作岗位期以及强化非药物干预期有关。
需要尽早识别最有可能经历困扰的人群，以便能够迅速实施压力缓解策略。年轻、女性教育工作者主观健康评分较低，且正在服用减轻焦虑、抑郁或睡眠问题的药物，他们可能风险最高。认识到加剧压力状况的时期，如疫情及其期间的间隔期，对于预测援助需求很重要。
